PIPELINE INTERFERENCE…AGAIN! – Anti-Oil and Gas Steven Guilbeault Says Canada Has Enough Pipelines Already, Doesn’t Need New Ones - Canadian Energy News, Top Headlines, Commentaries, Features & Events

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Canadian Culture Minister Steven Guilbeault said Wednesday Canada needs to maximize its use of existing pipelines before building more — a day after Prime Minister Mark Carney indicated an openness to new pipeline construction.

Speaking to reporters ahead of the first meeting of Carney’s new cabinet, the former environment minister claimed less than half of the Trans Mountain pipeline’s capacity is being used.

“So I think before we start talking about building an entire new pipeline, maybe we should maximize the use of existing infrastructure,” Guilbeault told reporters.

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“And, the Canadian Energy Regulator, as well as the International Energy Agency, are telling us that probably by 2028-2029, demand for oil will peak globally, and it will also peak in Canada.”

The actual utilization rate of the Trans Mountain pipeline is contested. According to data from the Canada Energy Regulator, utilization appeared to be up around 76 per cent as of December 2024.

Guilbeault served as the Liberals’ environment minister for four years before Carney moved him out of the post in March. He is now the Canadian culture minister with responsibility for Parks Canada, nature and biodiversity.

Guilbeault’s comments on pipelines came a day after Carney indicated in an interview with CTV News that he’s open to building more pipelines if there is consensus across the country in favour of it.

Carney also opened the door to making changes to the emissions cap on oil and gas production and to the federal legislation for reviewing projects, the Impact Assessment Act.

A clip from Guilbeault’s press scrum quickly made the rounds on social media, after it was shared by acting Conservative Opposition Leader Andrew Scheer.

“(Prime Minister Mark) Carney is off to a terrible start: He kept radical Minister Guilbeault in cabinet,” tweeted Scheer.

Alberta Premier Danielle Smith said in an interview that she had “grave concern(s)” about Guilbeault “still mouthing off, even though he’s no longer environment minister.”

“(He’s) lying, frankly… and he needs to be corrected,” said Smith.

Smith called earlier in the day on just named Environment Minister Julie Dabrusin to publicly disavow Guilbeault’s comments and commit to working with Alberta to get new pipelines built.

Dabrusin’s office didn’t immediately respond to a request to comment on this story.

Smith said on Tuesday that she was disappointed by the inclusion of both Guilbeault and Debrusin in the Liberals’ post-election cabinet, pointing to “anti-oil and gas” positions both have taken in the past.

Guilbeault, a longtime environmental activist, spent more than three years as environment minister before being reassigned in March. Dabrusin worked under him as parliamentary secretary for most of his tenure.

Kent Fellows, an economist at the University of Calgary, said that running pipelines at full capacity shouldn’t be an objective for policymakers.

“There’s no reason to desire any Canadian pipeline run at 100 per cent capacity all the time. A pipeline that is consistently full is like a road that is consistently gridlocked,” said Fellows.

“Minister Guilbeault’s characterization of the current system misrepresents … the economic value of excess capacity that allows for optionality.”

Guilbeault’s comments were also panned by Joseph Mancinelli, Canadian Director of the Labourers International Union of North America (LiUNA).

“It is a shame to see (Guilbeault) remain in cabinet with the same old rhetoric that is counterproductive, especially at a time where Canada must show strong leadership and invest in our energy potential,” wrote Mancinelli on social media.

Carney said during the election campaign he would keep the emissions cap in place, though Alberta Premier Danielle Smith said Carney struck a different tone in a meeting with her around the same time.

Canada’s oil and gas sector has indicated no desire to build new pipelines under the current regulatory environment. Following the election, 38 Canadian oil and gas CEOs wrote to Carney calling on him to repeal the assessment law and scrap the emissions cap regulations.